The Joseph Sears School, Kenilworth IL

Original Research by School Decision on The Joseph Sears School

The Joseph Sears School is a K-8 public school in Kenilworth, an affluent, highly planned residential village on Lake Michigan north of Chicago. It is the sole school in the village, serving an enrollment of roughly five hundred students across ten grade levels from pre-K through eighth grade.

Academically, the school displays strong proficiency in both tested subjects. In mathematics, third- and fourth-grade students show the highest proficiency, declining modestly by fifth grade and recovering somewhat by seventh, with eighth-grade proficiency sitting in the lower-to-middle range. In English language arts, proficiency is generally high across the tested grades, particularly strong in grades seven and eight. Science results in fifth and eighth grades are solid. All students tested in math and English, and participation in science testing was near complete. The school's overall proficiency index places it in the top tier among public schools across its county.

The student population is predominantly white, with Asian and multiracial students each representing a small but meaningful share. The school is not designated a Title I school and serves families in a community where housing values are very high, reflecting the village's status as an estate neighborhood of large single-family homes on spacious lots. The specifics of free-or-reduced-price lunch eligibility and special education or English learner enrollment were not available in the data.

The village itself has no commercial district—no restaurants, shops, or businesses within its boundary—by deliberate design. Residents rely on neighboring Wilmette and Winnetka for dining and shopping. The built environment is low-density, tree-lined, and quiet, with strict zoning mandating minimum lot sizes and architectural consistency. Development is limited to teardowns and replacements in the luxury single-family market; the village's population has remained essentially flat for over a century. Civic life centers on parks managed by the Kenilworth Park District, the union church, and the school itself, all sited on land originally donated by Joseph Sears, the village founder.

The school recently underwent a substantial facilities renovation as part of a master plan that added more than forty thousand square feet of new space, including expanded science labs, a commons and cafeteria, dedicated "learning neighborhoods" by grade level, and additional gymnasium and community space. The project earned LEED certification, was funded from existing reserves without a bond referendum or tax increase, and Phase III construction continued into 2025. For families considering the area, this means a fully modernized, sustainable school facility serving an intact, affluent community with strong academic performance and few external disruptions from growth or demographic change.

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Academic performance

How students perform on state tests, by grade, set against the district.

Math

Grade 392%

School 92% · District 92%

▲ 46 pts above state median · ▲ 53 pts above county median

Grade 495%

School 95% · District 95%

▲ 58 pts above state median · ▲ 66 pts above county median

Grade 576%

School 76% · District 76%

▲ 46 pts above state median · ▲ 55 pts above county median

Grade 682%

School 82% · District 82%

▲ 58 pts above state median · ▲ 65 pts above county median

Grade 789%

School 89% · District 89%

▲ 60 pts above state median · ▲ 67 pts above county median

Grade 876%

School 76% · District 76%

▲ 53 pts above state median · ▲ 58 pts above county median

English language arts

Grade 378%

School 78% · District 78%

▲ 34 pts above state median · ▲ 41 pts above county median

Grade 484%

School 84% · District 84%

▲ 35 pts above state median · ▲ 44 pts above county median

Grade 590%

School 90% · District 90%

▲ 38 pts above state median · ▲ 44 pts above county median

Grade 690%

School 90% · District 90%

▲ 40 pts above state median · ▲ 47 pts above county median

Grade 796%

School 96% · District 96%

▲ 44 pts above state median · ▲ 51 pts above county median

Grade 890%

School 90% · District 90%

▲ 37 pts above state median · ▲ 44 pts above county median

Science

Grade 588%

School 88% · District 88%

▲ 51 pts above state median · ▲ 61 pts above county median

Grade 883%

School 83% · District 83%

▲ 43 pts above state median · ▲ 56 pts above county median

This schoolKenilworth SD 38, same grade

Graduation rate (ACGR) reflects the federally published Adjusted Cohort Graduation Rate for the most recent year available. We refresh this data annually at the close of each academic year in June. The federal source publishes a banded rate (for example, "90-94%") instead of an exact number for cohorts small enough to risk identifying individual students. The state distribution chart, where shown, plots every school in the state with a published rate or band; schools whose rate is federally suppressed are excluded. Where the federal source publishes a band rather than an exact rate, the school is placed within its band using a stable, ID-derived offset, so its position is consistent across visits.